antimony

Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

noun A metallic element having two allotropic forms: a hard, extremely brittle, lustrous, bluish-white, crystalline material and a gray amorphous form. It is used in a wide variety of alloys, especially with lead in battery plates, and in the manufacture of flame-proofing compounds, paint, semiconductor devices, and ceramic products. Atomic number 51; atomic weight 121.76; melting point 630.63°C; boiling point 1,587°C; specific gravity 6.68; valence 3, 5. cross-reference: Periodic Table.

from The Century Dictionary.

noun Chemical symbol, Sb (Latin stibium); atomic weight, 120. A metal of a white color and bright luster which does not readily tarnish, having a specific gravity of 6.7, crystallizing in the rhombohedral system, and in the mass ordinarily showing a crystalline structure and highly perfect cleavage.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

noun(Chem.) An elementary substance, resembling a metal in its appearance and physical properties, but in its chemical relations belonging to the class of nonmetallic substances. Atomic weight, 120. Symbol, Sb.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

noun A chemical element (symbol Sb) with an atomic number of 51. The symbol is derived from Latin stibium.

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Medieval Latin antimonium attested in the eleventh century; see also here.

Examples

The dictionaries define the substance as a stone from which antimony is prepared, but the Arabs understand a semi-mythical mineral of yellow colour which enters into the veins of the eyes and gives them Iynx-like vision.

"'Pray, Dr Maturin,' he said on the quarterdeck, 'what is the effect of antimony?'

"'It is a diaphoretic, an expectorant and a moderate cholegogue; but we use it chiefly as an emetic. You have heard of the everlasting antimony pill, sure?'

"'Not I.'

"'It is one of the most economical forms of physic known to man, since a single pill of the metal will serve a numerous household, being ingested, rejected, and so recovered. I have known one handed down for generations... the name is said to signify a monk's bane.'

"'So I have always understood,' said Jack. 'But what I really meant was its effect on guns, was a little mixed with the powder.'

'Alas, I am wholly ignorant of these things. But if we may go by analogy, it should cause the piece to vomit forth the ball with more than common force.'"